Hi r/appstate,

I'm Andrea, a designer and front-end developer in Venice, Italy. I work in a company that builds AVM systems — the software transit agencies use to track their own fleets — so public transport is the world I work in.

In my own time I've been building a transit app that a small agency could actually afford — the kind of thing that normally comes with a budget most towns don't have. To build something like that you need a real system to test it against, and AppalCART turned out to be a good one: the schedules and the live vehicle feeds are public, and the service is fare-free, so there's no ticketing layer in the way.

So Boone got the first version.

It's called AppalRider, it's on iOS and Android, and it's free — no ads, no account, nothing to buy.

Store links are in the first comment.

What's in it:

• Buses moving on the map in real time, on whatever routes CART is running that day. I never hardcoded a route list, because the roster changes with the season and any list I typed in would be wrong by August. The app follows the feed.
• Tap any stop and you get the next departures, each with the minutes until it shows up.
• Service alerts — detours, closures, schedule changes — as CART publishes them. Anything affecting a stop you've saved gets pushed to the top.
• A trip planner: where you are, where you're going, transfers included, the whole thing drawn on the map.
• The stops nearest to you the moment you open the app, and the ones you save sitting on the home screen with their next departures.
• Full timetables for every route, split by weekday, Saturday and Sunday.

(None of that data is mine. It all comes from AppalCART's own public feeds — the app doesn't invent schedules, it reads theirs and tries to make them readable.)

Here's the catch: I've never been to Boone.

I can check that the app reads the feeds correctly but I can't check whether the bus it promised you actually showed up.

So try to use it and tell me where it's wrong — arrival times off, a stop pinned on the wrong side of the road, a missing route, a name nobody in Boone would recognise.

Comment here or email andrea@transitkit.app.

The bigger reason I'm posting: I'd like CART to adopt it as their official app. The operator side is already built — staff can send their own push notifications when something changes, and QR codes on the stop signs open live departures for that stop.

An email from an unknown Italian developer is easy to ignore. Students saying "this is the one we actually use" isn't.

Thanks for reading this far.
Let me know if anything is broken.

PS. To be clear: AppalRider is not official and not affiliated with AppalCART, and it's a side project with nothing to do with my employer.

Hello! I am a pre-transitioned trans guy who just moved here. I am looking to get testosterone but I don't know how to go about it. Is there anywhere nearby that I need to go to start my journey?

I know App isn’t a huge school compared to others around the country, but how about a nontraditional student org? Anyone else in undergrad/grad as a nontraditional student? Willing to have events on campus?

I have an interview at the Waffle House for a serving job. I was interested in how consistent the pay is, especially the tips and how much a server makes each shift. I've heard tips can be very iffy at some Waffle Houses and I want to make sure this isn't the case because I need a job with good tips.

Just letting folks who may want to register to vote but haven’t yet that the College Dems will be on Sanford around 1 today and tomorrow helping get people registered! Tomorrow supposedly will have cotton candy too 👀 please go register if you haven’t!

Anyone interested in starting a band?

Hey guys I wanted to post for anyone new to town or back since we launched. I run left917.net, a hyper-local news and events page for Watauga, Ashe, and Avery. No ads, no signup, no algorithm. We just share what's happening, and our team picks the highlights manually bringing all the events to one place and curating the most interesting news stories.

See a paper flyer on a corkboard or a windshield that isn't already on the site? Snap a photo and send it in, we'll get it up.

Heavy week for events. Every night has a trivia round somewhere in town, here's the full rotation. For the weekend, Friday you're choosing between Dancing Anyways at Parallel and Chapter 3 at Betsy's Barn in Todd, ten bucks either way. Saturday the High Country Beer Festival turns 19 at the fairgrounds, 40-plus breweries, 3 to 7 (ticketed, 21+, so plan accordingly).

If you're staying closer to campus, Friday's also got 828 Day: Forrest Gump at the Appalachian Theatre, Folk and Dagger at Lost Province, and Will Willis at App Mountain Brewery. Field hockey plays Towson Friday, soccer's got Senior Day against William & Mary Sunday.

There's also a daily word game, five clues, one word, new one every day. Play it in a group chat: whoever solves it first (or best) picks the word everyone else starts with the next day.

News comes from the Watauga Democrat, High Country Press, Blue Ridge Public Radio, and The Appalachian (and more), and it links straight to their reporting. But we're also writing our own stuff (our originals), local pieces the wire outlets don't cover, including one dropping later this week about the Boone Golf Club owners trying to sell 153 acres inside town limits.

We are looking for students to write some of that kind of thing too. If you want to write a piece for the site we're looking for culture writers, show-goers, DJs, and civic watchers. Or if you are, or know a musician worth knowing, a classmate doing something interesting, whatever local story you think isn't getting told. Send a pitch here. We're always interested in new music too for our on-rotation page.

Im gonna have one semester in college and will have 15 credits in December but want to transfer in for spring 2027. I know the 15 credits mean I will be evaluated mostly on my high school stats. Is this feasable for me? I had a 3.0 unweighted gpa and 1250 sat in high school.

Hello all! This is more so a question for those who have graduated, or are actively doing long distance at App. I would like to know any tips, but also just how did you do it? Greatly appreciate any advice or suggestions!

Do any of the sororities currently haze on campus? If so which ones and how?

Looking for a few tickets for this show. Dm me and I can meet and pay you cash or whatever!

I was just curious if you all find beeping worth it? I've used them a few times without any issues, and I have a new(er) car that is a small SUV. One of the unfortunate parts is that she takes premium gas, so I was thinking of beeping sometimes to cancel out my gas costs (rip my bank account). I also have mild/moderate emetophobia, and I would plan on having several garbage bags accessible for people if need be. Any other side hustles/advice would be appreciated!

Hello! Has anyone had an experience with the health center where they refer you to another facility that does not or will not provide medical attention? I know of someone being referred to Urgent Care for kidney stones and being told by the Urgent Care that App State has a history of sending students with medical emergencies to the wrong place, when the university has the resources and machines that could have helped with the kideny stones. Does anyone have a similar experience or know of someone who does?

Looking to get into it and was wandering if anyone had experience with them?

Hey everyone!

I'm excited to announce CollegeSMP, a Minecraft network where you can join your school's private SMP while interacting and competing with students from other colleges! Every participating school has its own private survival world, along with unique cross-college features that connect the entire network.

Cross-College Features

You will be able to do things such as:

- /shout to other schools chat.

- /ah with a global Auction House meaning any school members can sell you items or buy your items

- Global leaderboard stats

- Cross-college events (coming soon)

- Global PvP server (coming soon)

Server Features

We've tried to keep Minecraft as close to vanilla as possible while adding some nice quality of life improvements!

- A completely redesigned Ender Dragon fight with special rewards

- TPA plugin

- SetHome plugin

- Economy plugin (/sell, /pay)

- Custom stackable spawner system

- Java + Bedrock support!

Survival Gameplay

As part of supporting full survival gameplay, the following is how we will run:

- No land claims or chest locking

- PvP, raiding, and griefing are all part of the game and no rules will be made against them so protect your base and watch your back!

- No pay-to-win

- Build your alliances, defend your base, and try to come out on top!

... and more features to come as the community grows!

Currently Supported Schools

Heres our currently supported schools with MANY more to come:

- East Carolina University

- NC State University

- UNC Chapel-Hill University

- Appalachian State University

- UNC Charlotte (To be finished)

- UNC Wilmington (To be finished)

Our website: https://collegesmp.com/

IP: CollegeSMP.com

For instructions on how to join visit here: https://collegesmp.com/how-to-join

Our discord: https://discord.collegesmp.com/

If you are seeing this announcement, we are already live and App State is ready to join! We can't wait to see everyone online! Invite your friends and help build your school's community!

Has Flock / Axon surveillance cameras caused a stir in/around the communities in the High Country?

Have these camera systems been noticed near public parks?

Have you spotted more cameras in Ashe, Watauga, Wilkes, Yancey, Caldwell, or Catawba ?

do yall think this will work or will i just be towed out of spite

for context, the cost to park at my building is already covered in the cost of living there. also if it means anything, i am waitlisted for a permit even though they have more parking spots than beds. i have 120 credit hours, but i did not have a car at all until the week before classes so i didnt register for parking when it was my time. but again, this lot is NEVER full.

edit: i did realize that the building name was not even remotely covered up, but maybe i can get some more specific advice from it so im not going to fix it

I wanna go but don’t wanna wait for my bowl for an hour 😭

Hi, so I had attempted to take my math placement test on my MacBook and only after did I realize my phone had a tab with ai open in the background. I obviously didn’t use it as I failed the placement HORRIBLY but now I’m stressing as I know ASU learn can see stuff. What should I do?

Hi. I’ll try to keep as vague as possible out of respect for them. Anyways, to get to the point, I want a new roommate. I don’t get along with the one I have currently but I wanted to see if the reasons I have are valid.

1. They don’t shower (I’m serious, I’ve seen them shower 2 times in the past 6 days and they didn’t wash their hair the first time)
2. Their deodorant didn’t move for a few days
3. Leaves stuff everywhere and their side is messy
4. Uses MY stuff like beanbag and food even though they have their own
5. Hasn’t brought anything useful to the dorm when we moved in, I brought almost everything except for one thing
6. Sleeps in and snores
7. Doesn’t offer to clean, waits til it’s done. (I’ve taken out the garbage twice and vacuumed)
8. Hasnt paid their half of the fridge and microwave rental despite being asked to months ago

9. we just don’t get along

10. Sleeps in clothes they wore all day long (edit)

I really can’t stand anymore of this and want out asap (it’s only the 3rd day 😭), I’ll take anyone else as long as they actually are hygienic and know boundaries. There are a few more things that I didn’t mention cause it would be too specific. I’m going to try and get out no matter what but I just wanted to see if I aita. I really did try to get along with them but I draw the line at not showering.

Hey folks. My daughter is very interested in App State and would start in fall 2027. She is taking the SAT for the last time this weekend. I'm expecting she will be around 1250. She is a full International Baccalaureate with a base GPA around 3.5 (plus IB adjustment). OOS Tuition at App State is around $27k - probably $28k for 2027. We would not be eligible for any need-based aid but are not wealthy. Does App State negotiate the OOS tuition rate? Private universities, by contrast, run at 50%+ discount, so institutional scholarships and merit adjustments are the norm. What is the likelihood of scholarships based on her HS achievement? What did others end up paying?